“The mighty Tim ‘Herb’ Alexander is a polyrhythmic Viking of extreme and unique talent so the one person that we thought could step into his shoes and do it justice is the one and only Mr. Danny Carey,” Primus frontman Les Claypool said in a statement to the magazine. “Whereas Herb is the stocky, Easter Island-faced, boulder of a drumming human, at nearer to seven feet, Danny Carey is the mighty redwood tree of percussion; towering over his kit like a golden-haired noble sequoia.”

While Carey hasn’t played with Primus, Alexander has been connected with Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan on his Puscifer and A Perfect Circle project.

Alexander plans to return to the band in time for Primus’ tour in October. He suffered a heart attack last month that required later surgery.

Primus & the Chocolate Factory with the Fungi Ensemble, the band’s new album, is due out Oct. 21.